By Staff
Adolescent drug use hasn't really changed, according to results issued from the National Institute of Drug Abuse (NIDA) and the University of Michigan, received through a survey.
What has changed is a slight increase in prescription sedatives and painkillers.
The increase in one such drug worries health care professionals and those in the government. Oxycontin is a name brand painkiller. A controlled substance, this drug is popular in the black market drug scene.
The use of this powerfully addictive drug has in the past-year risen from 4 percent of 12th-graders in 2002 to 5.5 percent in 2005, which is an increase of 40 percent.
Drugs can be lifesavers. Unfortunately they can also cause young people to fail to thrive, fail in their studies and ruin their futures.
Sedatives, such as Valium, Xanax and Librium, are also being misused by the younger generation. Psychotherapeutic drugs, they are central nervous system depressants and are similar to tranquilizers. In 2005, nearly 8 percent of 12th-grade students reported using sedatives non-medically in the last year.
The survey, called, Monitoring the Future, first started 30 years ago. This year results were taken from nearly 50,000 eighth, 10th and 12th-grade students from over 400 secondary schools across the country.
Should someone you know be abusing painkillers and sedatives, seek help. You and they do not have to do this alone.
For more information on drugs and addiction, or to get help for a loved one in need, contact Narconon Arrowhead today by calling 1-800-468-6933 or visit www.stopaddiction.com.